Apparatus for cleaning elongated metal objects



3 Sheets-Sheet 1 J. M. HILBISH ET AL Filed May 4, 1938 APPARATUS FORCLEANINQELONGATED METAL OBJECTS ou. 3, i939.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY.

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Oct. 3, 1939. y J. M. HILBlsg-l. Er A1.

APPARATUS FOR CLEANING ELONGATED METAL lOBJECTS Filed May 4, 1938 Oct., 3, 1939. J. M. HIL'BISH Er Ax.

APPARATUS FR CLEANING ELONGATED METAL OBJEIGTS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 4, 1958 DINVEA'IT ATTORNEY.

Patented Oct. 3, 1939 garant oFFicE APPARATUS FOR CLEANING ELONGATED METAL BJECTS Joseph M. Hilbish and John K. McCahan, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Application May 4, 1938, Serial No. 205,936

10 Claims.. (Cl. 51-164)v This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for cleaning scale, rust and pitting from the surface of elongated objects, such as steel billets, slabs, bars, rods and other shapes, and treating the same by coating these objects with substances to retard further. corrosion.

The apparatus disclosed herein is an improvement of that disclosed in application Serial No. 133,991, filed March 31, 1937, bearing-the same title, upon which Letters Patent No. 2,134,557 were issued on October 25, 1938.

The principal object of this invention is the provision of apparatus for removal of scale, rust `and other sgurface .impurities and defects from elongated objects by impact and attrition.

Another object is the provision of a rotary drum for receiving elongated metal objects which Vare rolledand moved laterally therein and with means for tilting the drum on its axis for shifting the objects longitudinally thereof to produce an attrite and an abrasive action between the objects themselves and the drum.

Another object is the provision of means for changing the tilting speed of a rotary drum to control the longitudinal shifting of elongated metal objects therein. y

Another object is the provision of a oating rotary drum arranged to receive elongated metal objects and means for tilting said drum causing it to move longitudinally and thereby shift the objects longitudinally therein.

Other objects and advantages appear hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings al practical embodiment of the principles of this linvention is illustrated wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a machine for cleaning elongated metal objects illustrating the preferred form of the apparatus.

. Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the machine as viewed from the right in Fig.`1.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a detail View of the wheel mounting for supporting the rotary. drum. 1

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of a modified form of the machine.

Fig. 6 is a vertical section taken on the line 6 6 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is an end elevation of the machine shown in Fig. 5 illustrating the hoisting mechanism.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 4 on the drawings, l0 represents a track base which comprises a pair of fabricated channel members H assembledin spaced relation by means of cross braces andar- A. rail l2 is carried on the cap plate of each channel member thereby forming a track. At the left end the channel members and the track I2 slope to the foundation as indicated at I3, forming an inclined section of track which terminates at the stops Ill. The other end of the track l2 terminates at the stop l5 on the horizontal section of the channels.

The right end of the channel members Il also slope to the foundation and are arranged to support the inclined fabricated channel members I6 in spaced relation. The vertical planes of the channel members I6 are parallel to the vertical planes of the channel members Il but are spread farther'apart as may be noted in Figs. 2 and 3. A rail ll is carried on the cap plate of the channel members I6 formingan inclined track which terminates at the stops I8 at the top and the stops I9 at the bottom.

A toothed gear rack 26 is also supported o-n the top of the channel members I6 adjacent the rails il. :2i represents an inturned ange member which overlies a portion of the cap plate on the channel member I6 forming a guide rail to prevent a pinion which engages the gear rack from becoming disengaged.

22 represents a carriage which is preferably constructed of two parallel steel beams or channel members 23 having transverse members 24 and 25 of the same character forming a rectangularly shaped chassis. The ends of the transverse beams are preferably cut to lit the flanges of the longitudinal beams 23 and brackets` are supplied at the juncture of these members to strengthen the joints made therebetween. When each of these parts are welded together a satisfactory rigid structure is had.

The carriage is supported at one end by means of the'individually mounted wheels 26 each havingv a grooved periphery 21 arranged to ride on the rails l2. These wheels are journaled on the stationary pins 28 the ends of which are carried by the vertically disposed parallel plates 29. To provide rigidity in this journal supporting structure vertically disposed transverse plates 30 are tted between the plates 29 and arranged at right angles thereto. Triangular bracing plates 3l are welded to the inner plates 29 to brace the journal supporting structure against severe lateral loads. Each of these vertically disposedplates are welded to the horizontal plateV 32 which in turn is secured to the longitudinal beams 23 and the transverse beam 24 as illustrated in detail in Fig. 4. The transverse bracing plates 30 are notched out as indicated at 33 to permit the wheels 26 to engage the stops I4 and I5.

The other end .of the carriage is provided with similar journal supporting structures 34 centrally positioned with r-espect to the transverse beam 25. However it will be noted that the grooved wheels 35, which are carried by the supporting structures 34, are not journaled between the vertical plates 29 but are rotatably 'supported outside thereof owing to the fact that the gauge of the track II is wider than the gauge of the track I2. In place of the pin members 28 the journal supporting structures 34 are provided with the bearing sleeves 38 arranged to receive the rotary shaft 3l. An additional transverse plate 36 may be welded between the plates 29 directly above the axial center of the sleeves 36, as shown in 'do-tte'd lines in Fig. 1, to provide additional strength for the assembly.

The grooved wheels 35 are free to rotate on the shaft 3'I but are designed to carry the whole of the vertical load of the right end of the carriage, The pinions Y33 are mounted on the shaft 31., outwardly adjacent the wheels 35, and are keyed thereto. These pinions are arranged to engage the teeth of their respective racks 20.

The ends of the shaft 3I have bolted thereto the keeper plates 39 which retain the rollers 46 adjacent the pinions 38. These rollers are arranged to engage the under side o f the guide rail iiange 2 I. Thus the wheels 35 and the pinions 38 are retained against upward movement that might tend to dislodge these members from their proper engagement with the track I'I and the gear racks 26.

A sprocket wheel 4I is keyed to the shaft 31 intermediate its ends and is aligned with a second sprocket wheel 42 keyed to the shaft 43, carried by the speed reducer 44 which is operated by the motor 45.

The motor 45 may be reversible and operated remotely through a circuit controller. An electric switch may be placed adjacent each end of the track I'I for opening the circuit of the motor as the wheels 35 approach the stops I8 and |19. These switches may be so constructed to reverse the motor automatically, thereby providing continuous operation of the lift throughout a cleaning run.

As the lift proceeds up the inclinedv track I1 from the lower end thereof, which position is indicated on dotted lines in Fig. 1, the carriage 212 moves to the left alongthe horizontal portion of the track I2 until it reaches the horizontal position illustrated in full lines in Fig. l. Further movement of the lift in the same direction rolls the wheels 26 down the inclined section I3 toward the stop I4 and the Wheels 35, on the inclined track I'I, approachl the stopA I8'. This position of the carriage is also indicated by dotted lines in Fig. l. It should be notedV that the inclination of the carriage 22,` atthese extreme positions is approximately the same number ofv degrees from the horizontal, yet the horizontal distance; trav,- eled by the carriage from the horizontal, position to the upper limit of travelis materially less than the horizontal distance traveled from` the horizontal position to the lower limit of travel.k The structure providing this vmovement is 'particularly advantageous andj forms an impor-tant objectv ci this invention.

`If the motor 45 is voperatedat a constant speed and the-lift is started at the bottom'of the track Ifi, at whichtime the carriage 22 is tilted at an angle of 24, the carriagewillbe lifted.at va cone stant rate until it reaches its horizontal position. The left end of the carriage then proceeds down the incline I3 but the lift continues up the inclined track I'I at a constant rate. The rate of tilting of the carriage upwardly from the horizontal position is thus more than twice the rate of tilting below the horizontal position since the horizontal travel is less than one-half the distance during the upper period of tilting when the carriage reaches a tilting angle of 24 at its upper limit.

The degree of inclination of the tracks I2 and I'I maybe varied to produce the desired rate of tilting of the carriage with a constant operating speed of the motor. However the speed of the motor 45 maybe varied through a circuit controller to change the tilting rate curve just described to any desired degree. This is equally advantageous because the lower period of tilting may be obtained with a slower speed than the upper period, thereby accentuating the latter period. A variable speed motor also provides operating characteristics of the character described for a machine having only a horizontal section of track which is within the scope of this invention.

Two cradles 46 and 4l are mounted on the carriage and centrally disposed above the transverse beams 24 and 25 respectively. Each cradle comprises two sets of transversely disposed square plates 48 held in spaced relation by diagonal brace members 49, mounted on each side directly above the longitudinal beam members 23, and a framed platform 56 connecting the tops of .the plates 48, thereby forming a rigid cradle structure. Each set or" transverse plates 48 are held in spaced relation to receive therebetween four grooved idler rollers 5I which rotate on the stationary pins 52 held in said plates. The axes of the pins 52 are positioned to intersect diagonal lines drawn from the corners of the square plates 48 and are oppositely disposed to one another in quadrangular relation so as to intersect the circumference of an imaginary circle drawn from the intersection of the diagonal lines as a center. A circular opening 53 having the same center is cut in each plate 48, thereby exposing a portion of the perimetral surface of the idler rollers 5I as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

53 `represents a circular disk or track the perimetral edge of which engages the bottom of the grooves of the rollers 5I assembled between each set of plates. Thus the four sets of plates each of which support a group of four idler rollers are arranged to carry four circular track disks intandem relation.

TheseY track disks are provided With aligned openings 54 for receiving a. cage or drum 55 which may be secured thereto as by welding. 'Ihe-cageor drum 55 may be formed with a series of plates or bars disposedv octagonally in symmetrical relation aboutthe openings 54; and the cage or drum is provided with removable heads 56 on the end thereof for retaining an inner or floating drum 51. However asv shown on. the drawings the drum 55 is composed of a plurality of plates disposed in octagonal relation With their adjacent edges' Welded together. The outer octagonally shaped drum 55 'Withthe removable drum heads 56 may be used alone or may receive the inner floating drum 51 ofsimilar construction but smaller. in diameter and shorter than the outer-drum 55.

5.8, represents a motor mounted on the platform.. 5.0y of the,r cradle. 46` and. coupled to the is speed reducer 59` for driving the shaft 60. 6I represents a sprocket pinion fixed to the shaft 60 and arranged to drive the sprocket chain 62 which engages the sprocket 63 secured to the drum 55 for rotating the latter. The operation and speed of the motor 58 may be governed by the same circuit controller for operating the motor 45. In such case that part of the circuit' controller operating the motor 58 may be made to maintain the rotation of the drum at a constant speed during a complete cycle of operation of the lift or it may be desirable to stop or vary the speed of the drum 55 during diierent periods of the operation of the lift. On the other hand a separate controller may be employed but such a control might prove to be too complicated if the operator is expected to vary the speeds of both motors during a complete cycle of operation which could very easily be accomplished by automatic controller equipment.

It may prove advantageous to load elongated objects into the drum 55 when in any one of the positions indicated, and close the drum heads. When the machine is operated the elongated objects will be rolled within the drum and as the lift moves the carriage the drum` is tilted above and below the horizontal, thereby shifting the load longitudinally within the drum while it is being rolled. By varying the speed of the respective motors as described complete control of the shifting of the load may be had at all times. Thus elongated objects have different cross sectional shapes and being made of different materials may be controlled during their cleaning and coating operation to produce the desired result by controlling the sequence of the time of rolling or shifting of the load which may be accurately determined through the aid of the inclined track l2 and the variable speed motors.

By using the small inner drum 51 within the cage or outer drum 55it has been found that the longitudinal shifting of this floating drum may be made to occur at a smaller angleI to the horizontal than that required to shift the load longitudinally without this inner drum. When the floating drum with a load therein shifts longitudinally in the cage or larger drum 55 and strikes the lower end of the latter, the jar created by this abrupt shock will move the load longitudinally within the smaller or floating drum 5l. This is a marked advance in this art and is an important object of this invention as it contributes to the control of the cleaning o-peration.

Another important feature of this inclined track construction lies in the balancing of the carriage structure and the load carried thereby to decrease the power required to lift the same. Through these inclined trackways a mechanical advantage is obtained which also represents an important object of this invention that is an advance in this art.

Referring now to Figs. 5, 6 and 7, which illustrate a modification of this invention, it will be noted that the drum 55 is rotatably supported in the cradle 45 mounted on the short rectangular base 613 which in this instance is pivotally supported intermediate of its ends on the aligned bearings 65 secured to suitable foundations. The other end of the drum 55 is supported by a hanger 65 comprising a yoke 51 which is provided with an eye 68 at its upper end to receive the hook 69 of a hoist or liftI 10. The lower or bifurcated ends of the yoke 6l are provided with `vertical plane.

ment of this invention and effects a very material aligned bearings 'H arranged to receive the gudgeon ends of the shaft 12. The intermediate portion of this shaft is preferably square to permit the assembly of the parallel plates 13 on opposite sides thereof. These plates are similar to the plates 48 in that they are constructed to support the triangularly disposed pins 52 which rotatably carry the three idler rollers 5l. The plates are provided with aligned openings arranged to receive the container or cage 55 and support the same by means of the circular disk track 53 riding on the idler rollers 5l. This structure permits the lift or hoist 'l0 to tilt the container 55 about the axis of the bearings 65 while the container is being rotated.

Swiveled rollers 'I4 are provided on the ends of the shaft 12 and on the upper end of the yoke El. These rollers are arranged to ride on the wide vertically disposed track 15 and prevent the container from being moved laterally as the load is rolled and shifted therein.

The hoist or lift 10 may be hydraulic, pneumatic or an ordinary electrically driven hoist. In either case the valves 16 of the hydraulic or pneumatic hoists must be capable of being cracked so as to enable the operator to change the speed of tilting the drum during the proper periods of its operating cycle. The same character of control is required'of the electrical hoist. The operator is thus enabled to control the rolling and shifting of the load as the objects are being cleaned and coated. Thus a lift having a very quick or fast speed and a slow speed with a series of intermediate steps therebetween is advantageous for use with this apparatus. A short or quick lift or drop adjacent the upper or lower tilting positions of the container 55 creates a shock on the load therein Vcausing it to shift to the lower end thereof.

The method involved by the use of these structures has marked advantages compared to the methods presented by the prior art wherein the axis, upon which the container is rotated, itself travels in an orbital path.

Where the container rotates on an axis which travels in an orbital path, rods and other shapes I eration. It has been found in the commercial use 1 of this invention that such deleterious results do not occur due to the fact that the axis of the container does not travel in an orbital path but in a This is a very important improvesaving both in labor and material.

To assist and expedite the cleaning action we may introduce into the drum 55, or where the inner drum 51 is used, in the latter, some suitable abrasive material such as sand, coke dust, hard metal scale, etc.

When bars, rods or other shapes are to be coated, as after cleaning, with some material such as graphite, having the property of resisting rust .nately raising and lowering .an end of said vcontainer with respect to its horizontal position as it is being rotated to effect a .longitudinal shift of the objects therein, and means 'for accelerating the speed rof operation of said vlift `means as `a movement thereof approaches completion.

2. In Vapparatus for the purpose described, the Acombination of a'support, a horizontally disposed cylindrical container rotatably mounted on said support and arranged to receive elongated metal objects, means for rotating said container to shift said objectslaterally therein, lift means for alternately raising and lowering an end of said container above and below the horizontal while it rotates to effect a longitudinal shift of the objects therein, and means for effecting a faster speed of the lift above the horizontal than below.

3. In apparatus for the purposes-described, the combination of a support, a track mounted on the support comprising oppositely inclined end portions, a carriage movable on said track, a cylindrical container mounted on the carriage, means yfor rotating the container on its longitudinal axis, and means for causing the carriage to travel back and forth on the track.

4. In apparatus for the purposes described, the

combination of a support, a track mounted on the support having oppositely inclined end portions and a horizontal intermediate portion, a carriage movable on said track, a cylindrical container mounted on the carriage, means for rotating the container on its longitudinal axis, and means for causing the container to travel back and forth on the track. 5. In apparatus for the'purposes described, the combination with a support, an elongated cylindrical container rotatably and tiltably mounted on the support, means for rotating the container and means for tilting the same on its longitudinal axis alternately'in opposite directions, of a second container withinthe rst named containerrand of less length thanV the latter to permit free individual longitudinal movementof the second container within the first container.

v6. In apparatus for the purposes described, the

Vcombination with a support, an elongated cylindrical container rotatably andA tiltably mounted on the support, means for rotating the container and means for tilting 'the same on its longitudinal axis alternately in opposite directions, of a second container within the first named container and of less diameter than the latter to permit free individual rotary movement of the second container withinthe rst container.

'7. In apparatus for the purposes described, the combination with a support, an elongated cylin- .said objects laterally therein, lift means for alterdrical contain'l-rv rotatably and ti'ltal'oly4 mounted on .the support, means for rotating the container' Vtion of a support, a frame arranged for movement relative to the support, an elongated cylindrical container mounted on said frame for rotation on its longitudinal axis, means for rotating th-e container, means for moving the frame to cause the container to tilt relative to the support so that each end of the container will alternately be higher than the other end thereof to cause the shapes to slide longitudinally back and forth in surface contact with each other, and closure means at the ends of the container to limit the longitudinal movements of the shapes.

9. In apparatus for treating elongated metal billets and other elongated metal shapes, the combination of a cylindrical container, removable heads for closing the ends of said container, a frame, means on said frame arrangedV to rotatably support the container on its longitudinal axis, means for rotating said container, means for supporting the frame and the container on a horizontal transverse axis adjacent one end thereof, and means for raising and lowering the other end of said container causing each end of the container to be alternately higher than the other end to shift the metal shapes back and forth in the container as they are being rolled.

10. In apparatus for treating metal billets and other elongated metal shapes, the combination of a support, a frame movably mounted on said support, a pair of spaced apart cradles extending upwardly from the frame and. provided with axially aligned annular openings, an elongated cylindrical conta'mer extending through said openings and journaled in said cradles, the axis of the container being coincident with the axes of the openings, means for rotating the container in said cradles, means for movingV the frame relative to the support to impart to the container a tilting movement confined to a vertical plane for sliding the shapes longitudinally back and forth .in surface contact witheach other, and closure means at'the ends of the container to limit the endwise movement of the shapes.

JOSEPH HILBISH. JOHN K. MCCAHAN. 

